Gateway to Democracy
Chapter 2
Terms : Hide Images
| 635380164 | Federalist Papers | Series of essays written by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay arguing for the ratification of the Constitution; today a leading source for understanding the Constitution. | |
| 635380165 | Federalist 51 | Written by James Madison, discusses the needs for checks and balances in government. | |
| 635380166 | amendment | Formal process of changing the Constitution. | |
| 635380167 | Antifederalists | Those who opposed the newly proposed Constitution during the ratification period. | |
| 635380168 | Articles of Confederation | Initial governing authority of the United States, 1781-88. | |
| 635380169 | bicameral | Two-chamber legislature, as the House and the Senate. | |
| 635380170 | Bill of Rights | First ten amendments to the Constitution, which provide basic political rights. | |
| 635380171 | Boston Tea Party | Protest in which colonists dressed as Indians boarded vessels in Boston Harbor and threw chests of tea overboard to express anger at Britain's tax policies and commercial regulations. | |
| 635380172 | checks and balances | Government structure that authorizes each branch of government (executive, legislative, and judicial) to share powers with the other branches, thereby holding some scrutiny of and control over the other branches. | |
| 635380173 | Connecticut Compromise | Compromise on legislative representation whereby the lower chamber is based on population and the upper chamber provides equal representation of the states. | |
| 635380174 | constitution | Document or set of documents that sets forth the basic rules and procedures for how a society shall be governed. | |
| 635380175 | Constitutional Convention | Meeting by twelve states to revise the Articles of Confederation; ended up proposing an entirely new Constitution. | |
| 635380176 | Continental Congress | Initial governing authority over the Revolutionary War and other common affairs of the thirteen independent states. | |
| 635380177 | Declaration of Independence | Document declaring American independence from Great Britain and calling for equality, human rights, and public participation. | |
| 635380178 | divided government | Situation when one party controls the executive branch and the other party controls the legislative branch. | |
| 635380179 | Electoral College | The presidential electors, selected to represent the votes of their respective states, who meet every four years to cast the electoral votes for president and vice president. | |
| 635380180 | enumerated powers | Powers of Congress listed in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution, such as regulating commerce and coining money. | |
| 635380181 | federalism | System of government in which sovereignty is constitutionally divided between national and state governments. | |
| 635380182 | Federalists | Initially, those who supported the Constitution during the ratification period; later, the name of the political party established by supporters of Alexander Hamilton. | |
| 635380183 | general welfare clause | Gives Congress the power to tax to provide for the general welfare. | |
| 635380184 | impeach | Authority of the House of Representatives to bring charges against the president and other federal officials. | |
| 635380185 | implied powers | Powers not explicitly granted to Congress but added through the necessary and proper clause. | |
| 635380186 | judicial review | Authority of courts to declare laws passed by Congress and acts of the executive branch to be unconstitutional. | |
| 635380187 | necessary and proper clause | Gives Congress the power to pass all laws necessary and proper to the powers enumerated in Section 8. | |
| 635380188 | New Jersey Plan | Counterproposal to the Virginia Plan, aimed to strengthen the Articles of Confederation but leave the basic workings of the Articles intact. | |
| 635380189 | override | Congress's power to overturn to presidential veto with a two-thirds vote in each chamber. | |
| 635380190 | political parties | Broad coalitions of individuals who organize to win elections in order to enact a commonly supported set of public policies. | |
| 635380191 | proportional representation | System of legislative districting in which larger states receive more representatives than smaller states. | |
| 635380192 | separation of powers | Government structure in which authority is divided among branches (executive, legislative, and judicial), with each holding separate and independent powers and areas of responsibility. | |
| 635380193 | Shays's Rebellion | Revolt by Massachusetts farmers against heavy debts; helped convince states that neither the state nor federal governments were functioning properly. | |
| 635380194 | three-fifths compromise | Compromise over slavery at the Constitutional Convention that granted states extra representation in the House of Representatives based on their number of slaves at the ratio of three-fifths. | |
| 635380195 | veto | Authority of the president to block legislation passed by Congress. Congress can override vetoes by two-thirds majority in each chamber. | |
| 635380196 | Virginia Plan | Madison's proposal at the Constitutional Convention to radically strengthen the national government. | |
| 635380197 | write of habeas corpus | Right of individuals who have been arrested and jailed to go before a judge who determines if their imprisonment is legal. |
